


Emerald Ocean

by Lina99



Category: ace of diamond, ダイヤのA | Daiya no A | Ace of Diamond
Genre: Bonding, Drama, F/M, Harry Potter AU, Jealousy, Love, Quidditch, animagi, lots of magic, magical ball, so like wizard prom
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-01
Updated: 2019-06-13
Packaged: 2019-12-30 15:28:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 17,099
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18318080
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lina99/pseuds/Lina99
Summary: As a Slytherin Quidditch player attending Hogwarts you've always stood in the legendary Narumiya Mei's shadow. This year you've finally gotten the chance to play the position of Seeker for your House and it comes with expectations and responsibility. Many new developments in your group of friends occur, the many handsome boys at school are getting easier to talk to and there is of course the yearly Yule Ball to look forward to. Perhaps the one thing magical about muggle life is Love, but what is it in that of a witch?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This takes place around the time when the Dark Lord was just 'defeated', so when Harry was just a child in the HP universe.

At last your quidditch tryouts were successful. After 3 years of defeat you managed to take the extremely wanted position of the seeker. Well, you considered yourself lucky in this fourth year of yours but this was to be your position in the field for the rest of the year and nothing but a major injury or expulsion could change that. Narumiya Mei, the former seeker of Slytherin had been scouted for an international team to play in the official quidditch league but he had gotten badly injured during a game and was out for the rest of the season which meant he wouldn't seek for Slytherin this year either. Perhaps he would reclaim his position next year, perhaps not. All you knew was that you were happy with your position in the team, you were not going to let anyone down.

Entering the mess hall you were nervous to meet any eyes. You knew what they were thinking, the 'replacement' of Mei could never be as good as him. Of course you knew you weren't him, you would not win as many games for Slytherin as he had in the past. That wouldn't stop you from trying though. Oh... suddenly the realization kicked in that Mei would be attending school like a normal teenager again. What would he say to you? Would he hate you for 'stealing' his position? Would his friends bully you? 

"Oh! Look who it is, (F/n)-Chan!!" Speak of the devil and you'll step on its tail. Mei's shrill voice rung in your ears and you looked up to see him at the end of the Slytherin table with some of his friends, you gave him a nervous smile and he waved you over. First years whispered franticly amongst one another, who were you that the famous Narumiya would want your attention? Well, you thought the exact same thing. 

Balling your hands into fists you took a deep breath and strode forward. By Merlin's beard, Mei and his friends looked so cool you would definitely be too nervous to talk to them. The guys around him were talented quidditch players among different houses, Shirakawa Katsuyuki, Kamiya Carlos Toshiki, Yabe Koji and Yamaoka Riku. It seemed that Tadano Itsuki from a grade below you was new to their group, you admired him as he was two years younger than the talents. Arriving at your point of unintended destination you managed to squeak out a 'hi guys' and looked at Mei's smug face. (E/c) eyes quickly darted between his casted arm and the crutches that leant against the wooden bench. He really had taken a terrible fall.

"I heard you were selected to become our house's seeker this year." He said, he seemed to be waiting for your confirmation so you answered him.

"I am this years' seeker, yes." The air around the group was tense, you didn't know if they were hostile. They sure seemed to be.

Mei cast his head downwards and gestured towards the youngest one of the group. "Itsuki, help me up." His underclassman supported him to stand up and Mei was just about your height. He held out his hand to you and you looked at it like it was some alien object, then you looked back up at him in disbelief. Gently you put your hand in his and he firmly shook it. "Congratulations, (F/n). I was always positive you'd either catch up to me or definitely become seeker in your last year once I'd graduated." He pulled you a bit closer so the others wouldn't hear, except for Itsuki, the young Gryffindor who was holding him up. "The guys won't know what's gonna hit them." Narumiya slyly smirked.

He pulled back and you were grinning at him in disbelief, the look in your eyes full with gratification. "Thank you, thank you so much Mei- I, I mean Narumiya-"

"No, no. Mei. Mei is good, we are brothers in arms now." He grinned.

"Alright, Mei. I won't let you down. You will be watching, right?" You asked.

"Pff! Of course I will be! Who will mentor you, keep you in check? Honestly, you've put a heavy weight on my shoulders that I must carry for our house but if you just win everything I can sit back and relax." He chuckled and motioned for Itsuki to help him down again, he looked up at you now. "But remember, (F/n)-Chan, I cannot wait to recover. You better try and improve as much as you can while you still hold  _ my _ position."

A nod was all you could offer him in return and then you turned around to leave their group. Mei was a supporter as well as a challenger and he did a great job of reminding you of that fact. Despite his words you couldn't help the grin forming in your face, this was more exciting than you could have ever wished for. A distinctive laughter was heard throughout the mess hall and you saw someone cloaked in deep red hang around a certain wizard in sea green. A grin immediately spread across your features upon seeing two close friends of yours. You trotted towards them and the Gryffindor who stood next to the sitting Slytherin noticed you first. 

"Youichiii~" You sang as you approached Kuramochi, one of the key players in Gryffindor's quidditch team, he played defense but would often come up to attack out of nowhere as he was very quick on his broom. The two of you sat together in the same booth on the Hogwarts Express in your first year and immediately hit off. Unfortunately you were sorted in different houses but that did not stop you two from becoming great friends. 

He grinned back at you and spread out one arm to curl around your waist, you slung your arm around his neck so that the two of you would fit together. "It's been one day of classes without me, you're hopeless." He laughed.

"Can't help it. I need to hang around an idiot like you so that I'll look clever." Upon hearing that he raised his brows and looked down at you, not embarrassed to come even closer when the two of you already stuck together. 

"You wanna go, little Slytherin?" No matter how hard he tried to intimidate you, it definitely didn't work. People in the grades below you made way for him when he roamed the halls but you were not fazed by his tough acts and threats at all.

"Be careful now, you're talking to the seeker who is going to ruin your year." A playful smirk crossed your features and he pulled back, totally changing moods.

"Ah, right. I forgot about that." The hand previously leaning on his shoulder shot up to smack him over the head. "Ow! What did I do?" 

Someone next to the two of you sighed. "You're really thick headed, Kuramochi. No wonder you struggled to pass last years' exams." Looking down you found your housemate, Kominato Ryousuke looking up at you.

Untangling yourself from your friend you crossed your arms and smiled at him. "Ryo-san has a point."

"Okay, I see how it is. Ganging up on me like the sly bastards you are. It's cool, whatever, I'll go back to my table where my loyal housemates won't betray me." Kuramochi backed away with his hands raised in defense and you gave him a very amused look. He was being super sarcastic and yet you could detect the salty undertone. So childish. 

"See you in class, Mochi." You chuckled. After watching him leave you went and took a seat next to Ryosuke. This was his sixth year, his last. He was the captain of the Slytherin quidditch team and had taken you under his wing in your first year when you made the team to be a benchwarmer, though you always attended practice. 

"You two are so close, it's actually grossing me out." Ryo said, you just laughed. He was always one to come with the 'rude' remarks out of nowhere, though you knew he never meant any true harm. He'd stood up for you once in your second year when a teammate bullied you, when he truly meant harm Ryo was scary and no one ever messed with him because of it. 

"I kind of hate us too sometimes." You said as you immediately recalled crazy stuff that happened throughout the years with Kuramochi. The two of you did really dumb stuff sometimes but it was all worth it in the end.

"I'm not surprised." Your companion said before changing the subject. "What did Mei call you over for?" 

"So you saw that, huh?" The boy next to you didn't answer. "It was quite odd. He encouraged me, even gave me some confidence with that but he also let me know he's retaking his position once he recovers." 

Ryousuke grinned and that mildly scared you. "Looks like he's finally recognized you as his rival." You widened your eyes at his words.

"Me? Rivals with Mei?! Don't make me laugh Ryo-san, you're being ridiculous." Nervously you tried to laugh it off but it was true that Mei had said that he knew you could catch up to him. You were also well aware you weren't at his level yet. 

"I'm pretty sure he told you that in his own way back there, seeing your reaction. You give your thoughts away very easily, (F/n). That's a bad quality for a seeker." He teased.

"As if Mei doesn't do that!" You dramatically gasped at him but couldn't hide your smile.

"So," He said. "how do you feel about finally having the seeker position?" 

"Honestly? I always thought it would be near impossible to get there before my sixth year, when Mei would have graduated. Now with this sudden change of plans I'm insecure but also really looking forward to it, you get the best practice in games after all. I really hope to improve a lot this year." The boy next to you hummed in approval, after that dinner started and you talked about many other things with your teammates. Most of them congratulating you but they also all shared stories from their summer break. You'd met up with a few friends from Hogwarts over summer break, including Kuramochi and Ryousuke. 

People often saw you hanging out with many different guys, partly because of your quidditch career but also because most of your guy friends were very easy to talk to and one way or another you'd befriended them throughout the years. All of those connections had started out small such as being in the same train booth as Kuramochi, sharing a laugh during Care for Magical Creatures with Ravenclaw's Sanada as both of you didn't understand a thing about the lecture or sitting next to Miyuki for your whole second year during transfiguration class. 

Despite being surrounded by the guys you definitely did have some girl friends around, Umemoto Sachiko and Fujiwara Takako were your best friends around. They were much better at socializing with other girls so they often dragged you along in a group to Hogsmede together with Aotsuki Wakana, Natsukawa Yui and Yoshikawa Haruno. They were all great company and all of you were from different houses as well. You were grateful for the only upperclassman among the group, Fujiwara, she was in your house and had amazing advice for you whenever you needed it. It was because of her that you also got to know some other sixth year's, Ryo knew them as well but you two didn't hang out much out of practice. 

Isashiki Jun had taken this weird protective liking to you and always wanted to make sure you were okay and that no one was messing with you since he heard from Ryo that such things had occurred in the past. He was great and you were truly grateful for his company whenever you had it, Jun was an amazing defender for Gryffindor and you envied his talent. Yuuki Tetsuya was one of Jun's close friends, he was Gryffindor's striker though he could have easily been seeker. Then lastly there was Tanba Koichiro, Hufflepuf's seeker. He seemed shy and timid but he was awfully talented, you were excited to take him on this year. You really wanted to make this your best year so far, not only because of your new position on the team but also because this was the last year of many of your friends and you wanted to make it memorable and treasure it for as long as you could.

-*-

Charms class from Professor Flitwick. It was not a class you particularly struggled with, it didn't come terribly easy to you either so you were always entertained when you got to learn something new but got bored easily when you got multiple lectures about the same class. You were early and didn't really feel like sitting with anyone so you picked a place next to the window where Professor Flitwick wouldn't pay too much attention to you. If you were lucky you might even get the chance to take a quick nap. 

"Well, if it isn't Slytherin's newest seeker!" A familiar voice said to you. Leaning on the palm of your hand you lazily turned to where the sound came from. A deep blue cloak, your eyes flicked up and met the charming dark ones of Sanada Shunpei. The seeker of Ravenclaw. 

"Do we have this class together?" You asked him, completely ignoring his earlier remark. 

"We do. Did you not notice me last week?" He sounded offended though his grin did not waver.

"No. I was too busy focusing on tryouts in the first week, now that it's the second week of the year I might look around if I feel like it. I was kind of hoping we'd have Care for Magical Creatures together again." You confessed.

"Hah!" Sanada threw his head back in laughter. "Best year of my life. Those were the times, when do you have that class?" 

"I don't know I think Thursdays?" (E/c) eyes darted around the room as if that would help you remember when you had your classes, you were still getting used to your new schedule.

"Hey, me too! Let's just hope we have it in the same period." He let out another chuckle as he gathered his books. "Hagrid is going to kill us if he finds out he has both of us in the same class again!" 

"Hmm, he'll feed us to the Griffins." That made the two of you laugh. 

Sanada was such a weird guy to be around. He was easy to talk to, yet he was completely comfortable with long silences and you loved that. Perhaps, maybe once or twice the past three years you had admired him a bit as he became seeker for Ravenclaw in his first year. Not to mention he was handsome, no one could deny that, he really had that 'perfect guy' aura around him but that faded away quickly when you got to know him. For a Ravenclaw he was the laziest guy you had ever met and he was still super smart and got amazing grades in his classes, perhaps you were also a bit jealous of him. He truly had it all but that also made you wonder why he sought you out in between classes after the two of you met in your second year. 

Flitwick started his lecture and you opened your books on random pages, folded your arms together and laid your head down. Closing your eyes the murmur of the classroom became a comfortable background noise and you could feel yourself drift off slowly, that was until you felt someone blow on your ear. You jolted in your seat because of it and snapped your eyes open to be met with a grinning Sanada. You frowned at him, clearly displeased. 

"I always let you nap in class and you decide to wake me up just as I'm about to fall asleep? Ass." You closed your eyes afterwards and ignored him.

"Don't be like that! I was just sad I didn't get to sleep with you." Sanada whispered as he bopped your nose with his pointer finger, you still didn't open your eyes to look at him.

"You're so funny, you should become a comedian." Sarcasm dripped from your tone and you felt yourself get heavier, sleep infiltrating your system once more.

"Hm, I'll wake you up when class ends. Sweet dreams, (F/n)." The Ravenclaw said as he gently caressed your cheekbone with his thumb, you didn't hear him, you were already asleep.

-*-

"...and then he just walked away! The second after I confessed to him!" Sachiko groaned in frustration. It was known that the Gryffindor in your grade had a crush on Hufflepuff's Kawakami. Another quidditch player, it was how you knew he existed other than that you probably wouldn't have noticed him much. Though he did hang out with Kuramochi and Miyuki sometimes. "Oi! (F/n)! (F/n), are you even listening to me? This is important to me, you know..." 

Rapidly blinking you averted your gaze from Takako and Yui who were engaged in a game of Gobstones against one another as you were all hanging out in the courtyard. "I'm sorry Sachi, there's a lot of stuff on my mind and I just got distracted for a bit. That sounds not like him though, are you sure he didn't mumble something under his breath? Kawakami is shy after all." 

"That's true, Nori is not the most social one out there." Takako said as she didn't avert her gaze from the game she was winning. 

"You know," You suddenly got an idea, you thought it would make things very clear to Sachiko even if you weren't sure your theory was correct. "I could ask Mochi or Miyuki if they know anything is up with him. Though I must admit, I've seen him and Ono together... like, a lot." 

Yui gave you side eyes as a smirk crossed her features. "Meaning what, (F/n)?" 

"I think Nori is gay." 

Sachiko turned beet red. "No! This can't be true, that's- I've embarrassed myself forever."

"That would make so much sense!" Takako sighed dramatically, as if she was saying 'how did I not think of this before'. 

"We don't know for sure yet," You started as you stood up and dusted your cloak off. "only one way to find out. I'll ask Miyuki and Kuramochi." 

"Maybe he's not gay, maybe he's bi? Perhaps there is hope. You know, Penny Haywood from Hufflepuff is bi as well." Sachiko said, it was cute that she was trying so hard. She really did admire Kawakami but you sadly had a feeling he was never going to like her back.

"Do you think bisexuality is a Hufflepuff trait?" Takako snickered as she won the game against Yui. 

"Let us ask the expert." Silence fell over the group as all heads turned to Yui. 

"You expect me to come out?" She deadpanned and all of you gave her a look as to say 'might as well do it now'. "Okay fine." You and the girls erupted into cheers and Takako immediately hugged Yui from where she was sitting. The Hufflepuff pried her arms away from her form and sighed. "Not so fast, I'm a lesbian." 

"That's even better! Everyone knows lesbians give the best advice for like, everything." Sachiko said. Takako and you just nodded in agreement. 

"Yui, I love you so much but I have to go find that four-eyed idiot right now." You said and extended your hand out to her and she placed her own in yours. You guys always did a hand hug for quick goodbyes.

"It's cool, see you in flying class!" She replied and you smiled back.

With that you left your group of friends and walked back to the main hall of the lower floor. You definitely didn't have a clue where either Miyuki or Kuramochi would be at this moment. Perhaps Kuramochi would be on the training grounds chilling in the sun with a couple of guys. Ah, you should have paid attention in charms class. The communication spell came easy to you in class but you had forgotten the right way to cast it already. Maybe you should have stayed awake with Sanada. 

As you turned the corner to go back inside you bumped into someone's chest and immediately drew your wand out of instinct. A bit of a dramatic reaction as there was nothing to fear in Hogwarts.. well, only the forbidden forest but that was far away. The slender cedar wood wand in your hand was pointed directly at the forehead of no other than Miyuki Kazuya, your housemate, teammate and game maker of the quidditch team. "Woah there! What a way to greet your favorite teammate, (F/n)-Chan." 

"Ugh shut up, Bakazuya." You groaned and stuck your wand in the pocket of your cloak. "I was looking for you." 

"Trying to get me to skip practice with you?" He smirked.

"No, I would never. I play to win." A frown crossed your face.

"Because you care about the honor and traditions of Slytherin." He finished the well known motto for you.

"Don't you?" 

Miyuki chuckled once more. "Like our emblem, I am sleek, powerful and frequently misunderstood." 

"Weird that even when you say our words you sound like a Ravenclaw, you don't look out for your own as much as we all do, do you?" This hostile side of you always rose to the surface when talking to him for some reason, even though you had good times with Miyuki as well you often just argued about nothing.

"Who cares? I am but another seed of greatness, and don't you forget it!" He sarcastically said. You didn't like that he talked like that about the ancient words from Salazar Slytherin, it was like he was mocking the wizard. It was like mocking Merlin himself since he was once a Slytherin too.

"I'll ask the Bloody Baron to put you in your place." An evil grin appeared on your features at that. Miyuki visibly paled.

"He doesn't like me very much..."

"That's because you asked him how he got bloodstained, everyone knows he doesn't like that." You laughed. 

"Weren't you out to find me for some reason?" He said as he scratched his jaw. Ugh, he really had a good jawline.

"Y-Yeah I was, I had a question about Kawakami and I was wondering if you, or Mochi, could tell me more." You asked.

Miyuki frowned. "Nori? What would you want to know about him?" 

"Is he gay?" The wizard in front of you couldn't keep it together at your blunt question. He doubled over in laughter and you just stood there, waiting for him to calm down from his laughing fit. 

He wiped a tear away from his eyes and sighed in amusement. "Don't you know?" You shook your head as a way to ask him what you should know. "He and Ono have been dating for like a year or something." 

It was silent for a while, you blinked a few times to process the news. It didn't surprise you but you were really curious how you did not notice, but more so as to why Kuramochi had never thought about sharing that with you when he definitely had heard from you that Sachiko fancied him. Miyuki raised his brows, he snapped his fingers in front of you and asked you if you were still there. In silence you raised a hand. "Excuse me I have to find Kuramochi  _ right now _ . Do you know where he is?" 

"Training grou-" 

"Thanks." You knew enough. After storming away in a hurry you heard him call after you.

"You should thank me more often, (F/n)-Chan! It sounds terrific!" 

"I hate you!" You yelled back, immediately shooting an apologetic look towards Miss McGonagall who just happened to walk by. 

-*- 

  
  



	2. Chapter 2

As you neared the Quidditch Training Grounds you already knew your friend was present at your destination. HIs distinctive laughter filled the air. You could never stay mad at Kuramochi for long, you had this certain… weakness for him. Not sure in what way that weakness had hit you but it did. You were just always uncertain about your friends, you just hoped that they were really your friends and that you weren’t living some lie.

Weird insecurities to mull over but you felt them anyways. Right now you were scared that perhaps Youchi as you knew him may not have been the Youichi you spent four years with at this magical place.

The Gryffindor team was just making their way out of the entrance of the little arena when you passed through the group, giving some people polite smiles before finding Kuramochi who was conversing with someone. You pointed a finger at him and he found your eyes while still speaking to his teammate, he visibly paled. Deep voice faltering he held a hand out in defence as you stormed his way, grabbed him by the collar and took him with you in one of the hallways where you could enter various changing rooms.

The boy seemed somewhat frustrated that you plucked him away from his team like that but also scared at the same time. He carefully leaned his broom against the wall and crossed his arms, trying to look unfazed when he was backed up against the wall by your aggressive body language. “W-What did I do now?” He mumbled, avoiding eye contact. Only now you noticed a scratch above his brow, it bled a little. It must have happened in practice.

“You never told me about Kawakami!!” You hissed.

 “What is it with Nori?” He frowned.

 “I told you a while back that Sachiko liked him and you never told me he was gay when he and Ono have been dating for like- forever!” The tone of your voice sounded angry but the look on your face was filled with disappointment, you thought you could have expected more from your best friend.

 “That’s what this is about? Well I’m sorry, (F/n), I never really- I forgot. I didn’t know you’d be angry about _this_ stuff.” Kuramochi didn’t like that he disappointed you but he also didn’t like how big of a deal you made about this, you really didn’t need to.

 “What is ‘this stuff’ supposed to mean?” Now you were getting actually angry, he’d struck a nerve.

 He clicked his tongue in annoyance, rolling his eyes. He was really pissing you off now. “This is just not like you. You never cared about that stuff, crushes and whatever, it’s not the (F/n) I know.”

 “Well, I care about my friends and you are not the Kuramochi I know either.” You shot back at him. It was silent for a while. You had a staredown, he looked at you with no emotion in his eyes and you just frowned up at him. “What else have you kept from me?” You whispered, the earlier argument about nothing forgotten.

 “There’s a lot of stuff you don’t know about me.” He nonchalantly said and held eye contact.

 “Like what? I thought you told me everything..” He was slowly turning the tides, you were no longer intimidating him but for the first time in forever he succeeded in scaring you. You took a step back and he pushed himself off the wall. Kuramochi didn’t say anything, he just swept his eyes over your form and looked away.

 “Forget it.” Youchi sighed and grabbed his broom, leaving you behind in the empty hallway. It took you a few seconds to gather your thoughts and decide that you wouldn’t let this interaction end with a fight.

 You ran after him, he was walking back to Hogwarts over the fields. He turned around upon hearing his name from you and he stopped, not turning around to fully face you but just turning his head.

“Youichi.” Was what you managed to say in between breaths. He didn’t say anything. “You’re hurt, l-let me help you.”

 “It’s nothing.” He turned around again, Kuramochi didn’t like his attitude right now. Oh, he desperately wanted to forgive you but he was too proud. Such a Slytherin thing to do, it disgusted him.

 “Come on, I help out in the Hospital Wing all the time.” You caught up to him and drew your wand, placing a hand on his upper arm. “It’ll take a second—“

 “Leave me alone, (L/n).” He avoided your eyes.

 “Kuramochi what’s wrong with you! Let me just heal you and ignore me afterwards, I don’t care but just let me do this.”

 “No.” You now walked in front of him, stopping him in his tracks.

 “Youichi—“

 “Flipendo!” He suddenly said and you felt yourself fly a few meters back through the air. Landing on the cold hard dirt hurt and you coughed. He used the knockback jinx on you, a dueling spell.

 Both of you looked at each other with wide eyes for a second. The Gryffindor seemed just as surprised by his actions as you. He opened his mouth and was about to make way to you until a booming voice interrupted him. “KURAMOCHI! (L/N)!” Turning your head to see where the sound came from you saw Madam Hooch briskly walking in your direction.

 The boy quickly stuffed his wand away in one of his pockets, muttering a quiet ‘fuck’ in the process. You could only prop yourself up on your elbows, still sore from the impact on the ground. The flying instructress put her hands on her hips. “Using a dueling spell on another student, are you mentally ill?” Madam Hooch was one of the most feared teachers of Hogwarts. “Forty points from Gryffindor!”

 “Madam Hoo—“ You tried to reason with her, despite Kuramochi’s outburst you didn’t want him and his House to suffer so badly from his actions.

 “Silence, (L/n)! You get detention for disturbing practice of other house’s quidditch players. Kuramochi, you get detention for using a dueling spell on another student.” She sternly said.

 “Madam Hooch, please, (F/n) did nothing wrong—“

 “Don’t try anything with me, Kuramochi. It is widely known you two are good friends, so I don’t know what caused an argument to escalate this far but you two best talk it out in detention.” Both you and Kuramochi looked at each other in defeat, it was best to leave for detention now should you not want to be stuck in the classrooms any later. Your best friend still went over to take your hand, helping you on your feet. Perhaps you two didn’t need many words to understand each other.

-*-

Detention just had four people in it. Kuramichi, you, surprisingly Sanada and the Hufflepuff Tonks who found herself more often in the detention classroom than she did in the normal ones. No one was allowed to sit next to each other and you leaned your chin on your palm, looking at Sanada who sat at the bench next to yours. “So, how did you end up here?”

 “Take a wild guess.” He grinned. The Ravenclaw looked as charming as ever, it wasn’t fair.

 “Did you sleep through Potion Class?” You raised a brow. He just grinned even wider, closing his eyes and shaking his head at his own foolishness. It made you laugh. “I’m surprised Snape didn’t kill you!”

 “He nearly did, believe me.” His dark eyes passed over your form, there was still some dirt on your cloak from when Kuramochi knocked you down and he frowned just the tiniest bit, his gaze now on Gryffindor’s defender. “What did you two do?”

 “Nothing, we just got into a little argument and Madam Hooch just happened to walk by at the wrong moment.” A quick smile was flashed his way, Sanada didn’t buy it. Then you turned around in your seat to look at your best friend. “I always had a feeling something was up with you.” You whispered, not wanting Sanada to overhear it all.

 “I guess I couldn’t hide everything from you forever. ‘You will never fool the cedar carrier’, isn’t that what Ollivander says about people with wands like yours?” Kuramochi gave you half a smile, still feeling bad about what he did to you.

 “That’s true. But what is it, Youichi? Is there really something so bad or so important you must keep it from me?” He sighed at your words, motioning for you to come even closer and so you did.

 Wish a hushed voice he said the following. “I’m an Animagus.”

 Your eyes widened and a smile spread across your features. “Oh my God Youichi that’s ama--” Before you could finish your sentence he clamped a hand over your mouth and hissed for you to shut up. Sanada glared at him and Tonks gave a look over her shoulder but didn’t care enough to pay attention.

 “An unregistered one.” Kuramochi released the hand over your mouth and you turned your head to the side, eyeing him dangerously.

 “You’re kidding. Kuramochi Youichi please tell me this is a joke.”

 “No it’s not, calm down. Being an animagus has its risks, if you’re registered at the ministry some bad people might hunt you down. Especially if you’re a teenager which makes an easy target. There are some crazy people out there, (F/n) that’s why.”

 “Shit… I never knew that Mochi, I’m sorry. Thank you, though, for telling me. I bet you didn’t want to.” A kind smile found its way to both your faces.

 "I didn’t want to tell you to keep you out of danger.” The tension between you two had finally disappeared and everything reverted back to normal, it was going to be okay. “So obviously I told Miyuki first.”

 That made you laugh, you didn’t really care that others knew of his secret before you. It only mattered that Kuramochi trusted you enough to share his secret with you. “We’ll talk about this some more later, yeah? Thanks.” He nodded and you turned back to look at the classroom which was fairly empty. Sanada was obviously trying to get your attention so you quirked a brow at him. “What do you want now, Ravenclaw?”

 “Woah there why so hostile, Slytherin? I was just admiring the view.” A gagging noise was heard from behind you and you laughed at Kuramochi’s reaction upon hearing the exchange.

 “I’m just messing with you, idiot. What’s up?” You said.

 “You can produce a Patronus, right?” He asked out of nowhere.

 You frowned. “Yeah, can’t you?”

“Yes, I can. It’s just- do you know much about that spell? I mean, I know you’re good at charms so I was just wondering.” Sanada cleared his throat, he seemed uneasy and perhaps… embarrassed about something?

 Kuramochi shifted behind you and joined the conversation. “What’s up with your Patronus dude? When did you last cast it?” The Gryffindor could get hostile towards Sanada from time to time, claiming he didn’t like the way the boy talked to you but you silently thanked him for being helpful and seeming genuinely concerned about him for once.

 The dark haired seeker looked around to see if no one overheard you three and scooted closer. “Okay so, I haven’t used the spell an awful lot of times, only when we learnt it last year. Maybe around the amount of how many times we had to cast it to pass, right? Raichi asked me to cast it since he’s learning the spell right now and I swear- the animal changed. The Patronus I have now is not the same as the one I had when I first learnt it.”

 Kuramochi and you exchanged a look. This was odd. It’s true you were proficient in producing the Patronus, it was one of your best spells but you never did any other research on it. “Shun, what was your Patronus animal before it… changed and well, what did it change into?”

 “It used to be an Occamy.”

 “A what?” Kuramochi blinked.

 “An Occamy, they’re plumed, two-legged winged creatures with serpentine bodies originating from the far east and India. They eggs they produce have silver shells so they’re highly sought after, making them a threatened magical creature.” Magical creatures were always something that interested you, you were glad that the knowledge came in handy for once.

 “And what’s it now?” Your best friend asked.

 “A fox.” Sanada said. (E/c) eyes widened but you didn’t say anything, your patronus was a fox too, after all.

 “P-Perhaps we can see Professor Quirrell about it, as teach of Defense Against the Dark Arts he must know something about it.” The boys agreed with you and all you had to do now was wait until detention was over. It didn’t take very long as all of you decided to talk about the upcoming Yule ball. You’d teased Kuramochi about who he was going to ask to the ball and if it was anyone you knew or had heard about, you asked Sanada the same but he had this look in his eyes. A look you didn’t know was genuine or just your mind playing tricks on you, giving you false hope. Especially after the Patronus talk you were starting to believe it, that Sanada had a thing for you. Oh well, if he’d ask you to the Yule ball or not was also a good question, there were tons of girls who would be waiting to ask him after the date was announced. Thinking about it you wouldn’t mind going to the ball with him, there was just one problem should it escalate.

Starting this year you had set a rule for yourself, unfortunately for you Sanada was one of the few who broke it.

-*-

 It was late when detention ended. Most student had returned to their common rooms and most teachers were in their office, busy grading papers and preparing lessons for upcoming days. Kuramochi had told you he had things to take care of, leaving you and Sanada alone on your quest for knowledge about the Patronus charm. Wanting to retire to both of your common rooms as well, the two of you hurried towards the East Tower. By the time Sanada and you had reached the top of the stairs you were out of breath and needed a few moments before you could continue, but at last you knocked on Professor Quirrell’s office door.

 It didn’t take long for the door to open, the nervous professor showed his face. He was a young man who wore a turban on his head, his dark eyes flicked between you and Sanada. “What can I do for you at t-t-this hour, Miss (L/n), Mister S-Sanada?”

 Shunpei was about to open his mouth but you placed a careful hand on his arm to stop him from saying anything, letting him know you’d do the talking. “We’re so sorry to bother you at this hour, professor, but we have a very urgent question about the Patronus charm.”

 “The P-Patronus charm, you s-say? Well, I s-suppose I cannot turn down a question about s-such an interesting matter. Come in.” Quirrell stuttered and opened the door for the two of you to enter. His office which was located next to the defence against the dark arts classroom was much smaller than you’d expected, but maybe that was because it was so stacked with books, bottles and other things you didn’t know the name of and wouldn’t mind never knowing. Professor Quirrell sat down behind his desk and he spoke once more. “How can I help you t-t-two?”

 “Well,” Sanada started and exchanged a glance with you. “it’s actually about me, professor. I came to the discovery that my Patronus has changed forms and I don’t know why that is.”

 Quirrell wiped sweat off his forehead. “Changed you s-say? Interesting, very interesting indeed. Patronuses are known t-to change, yes. It happens more often than one would t-t-think. A great shock, an emotional upheaval, s-such things can cause the Patronus to sh-shift forms. What did your Patronus change to, Mister S-Sanada?”

 “A fox, professor.” The professor scratched his goatee. His eyes still darting all around the room.

 “Is there anyone in your family or group of f-friends who might have s-such a Patronus animal?”

 “Not that I know of, sir.” Sanada answered.

“I s-s-see.” Professor Quirrell looked you in the eyes. He knew your Patronus animal, it had been him who taught you the spell after all. The nervous man folded his hands together. “Mister S-Sanada please contact me again if any other changes occur, I am here to t-t-talk anytime. If you would be s-so kind to step outside, I have t-to discuss something with Miss (L/n) for a second.

 You nodded at Sanada and he left, he would probably wait for you outside and ask you a dozen questions about what Quirrell talked to you about. That would be fun. After facing the professor once more you sighed. “Has your f-friendship with mister S-Sanada underwent any changes as of late, Miss (L/n)?”

 “Not that I know of, sir. What… what does it mean that his Patronus changed into the same animal as mine?” You asked.

 “T-That I cannot say, Patronuses are s-still very mysterious things, even to a professor like myself. But I can tell without any other knowledge that Mister S-Sanada is very fond of you, s-so be careful around him.” Quirrell said.

 “I will, thank you for helping us, professor.” You said and game him a smile.

 “Of course.” He smiled back. Afterwards you left his office and Sanada sat against the wall, waiting for your arrival. He nearly jumped up when he saw you emerge from the office.

 “What did the prof ask you?” He grinned, it was good to see him grin again.

 “Nothing much, he was just on my ass about this assignment I still haven’t turned in. So nothing important, really.” Those were all the lies you could give him, any more and you couldn’t keep it up much longer.

 “Ah I see. Hey (F/n), what’s your Patronus actually? I never asked.”

 “Oh, it’s a Horned Serpent.” Maybe one more lie would be okay.

-*-

“So you lied to him.” Sachiko said.

 “I mean yeah? What else could I do?” You exclaimed.

 “I don’t know… maybe tell him the truth?” Yui deadpanned. You were having lunch the next day with the two girls and immediately told them what was going on. They were always the first to come to you for advice and you did the same in return.

 “Ugh, I just- I need time to figure it out, okay? Even Professor Quirrell wasn’t sure what it meant, though he did hint at something but I’m positive that’s not what it is.” A sigh left your mouth and you stirred the soup you were eating mindlessly.

“Meaning…?” Sachiko raised her eyebrow with a smirk.

 “That Sanada is in love with me? Of course not.” You laughed, it was weird to think about and honestly you didn’t want to think about it either. It was too complicated right now, you didn’t even know if you liked him that way. Sure, there were some guys at school you wouldn’t mind having a fling with and Sanada may or may not be one of them but you weren’t sure about relationships, if it would even come to that.

 “I’d get him.” Yui nodded. “Disclaimer: I’m not in love with you, but you’ve got many great qualities that are attractive to lots of people. Trust me, I would know.” She said.

 “Are you saying…” You gave her a look and she smirked.

 “Oh my god, Yui! You know someone who likes, (F/n)?!” Sachiko whisper yelled, trying to keep it down while letting you two know how excited she was. This was so embarrassing, you already covered your mouth with your hand to stop yourself from laughing.

 “They told me trusting I wouldn’t tell, so I won’t.” Yui closed her eyes.

 “That’s just not fair! At least give us a gender, or.. which year are they in? Eye color? Hair color? Do we know them? Anything!” Sachiko begged for information, she could be quite persistent when she wanted to be. Her Gryffindor qualities were showing.

 “No one told me they were specifically ‘in love’ with (F/n) or anything, but I do know they have an interest in you. Two words:” Both of you silently looked at her. “blonde, brunette.”

 “Okay sure, I’ll leave the investigating to you Sachi, I’m not very interested on finding out yet.” You smiled.

 “But the Yule ball is coming up so we should keep an eye on all the blondes and brunettes.” She nodded.

 You just agreed with the girl, she was always so excited about everything and sometimes her energy levels were hard to keep up with. Lunch was nearing its end but you didn’t have class next period. Not sure with who you were going to spend it yet, perhaps alone, you looked around and tried to remember who you hung out with last week. It didn’t take long for your eyes to land on someone, but you would never ask him to hang out with you on your own. Narumiya Mei. His arm was out of the cast but he still walked with crutches. He was discussing something with Carlos when his eyes met yours, you looked away quickly and felt your face get hot. It was embarrassing to get caught by him, he might get the wrong idea! Maybe even call you out? Mei had been nice to you but you knew he could also completely destroy someone verbally if he wanted to, if he called you out in front of the entire school in the Great Hall you were certain you would die on the spot.

 “Oh!” His shrill voice could already be heard and you prayed that he wouldn’t call your name. “(F/n)-Chan!”

  _Oh no._

 Trying to look as if his call surprised you, you turned your head his way with questioning eyes. He leaned on his elbow and waved you over. Narumiya and his friends always confiscated the end of one of the four long tables and you felt eyes on you as you walked their way. It reminded you of the first week. “W-What’s up Mei?” You tried to sound casual.

 “Sit down, sit down.” Mei commanded and you stiffly sat down at the bench next to him. “How is practice coming along?”

 “Oh, uh, fine really. I just hope I’ll be able to deliver when competition starts this saturday.” A nervous smile crept over your face.

 “Right.” He nonchalantly nodded, you couldn’t believe he was so arrogant. “You could work on your dodging skills, you know.”

 He caught your attention with that, he was trying to help you a few days before your first game as the Slytherin seeker? “Really? Tell me more, if- if you want to, of course.”

 “Obviously I was about to tell you what you can improve, I want us to win the House Cup this year too.” Mei dramatically rolled his blue eyes. “Gryffindor and Ravenclaw’s seekers can get physical, they’ll try to push you off your broom if they can’t get you off their back. Especially Sanada is a pain in the ass, he almost knocked me into the stands once. But whatever, we play Gryffindor on saturday. Now listen,” Mei said with a serious tone as he faced you. “Gryffindor’s seeker, Sawamura is a complete and utter idiot. Once he sees the snitch he will chase it and doesn’t think about anything else, which _you_ can use to your advantage.”

 “Wait, how?” You weren’t completely following Mei, starting in a Quidditch game was so new for you you hadn’t thought about what could happen in the game since you didn’t have experience.

 Narumiya pointed a finger at your forehead. “You’ve got brains, (F/n)-Chan, use them. Sawamura won’t be a match for you if you just think a little.”

 “O-Okay, thank you, Mei.” You gratefully smiled at him, thankful for the compliment and confidence boost.

 “Of course, of course.” He waved you off.

 “Hey um…” At first you didn’t want to ask him, but you were here now anyways. “are you off next period?”

 “Yup, why?” He blinked at you.

 “Me too, I was just wondering if you’d want to take the time to maybe teach me some tricks for saturday.” Please say yes.

 Mei looked you up and down for a second, a grin broke out on his features right afterwards. “Now we’re talking, seeker!”

-*-

  



	3. Chapter 3

It was saturday morning, the morning of your first game as Slytherin’s seeker. The weather wasn’t very favourable, the skies were gray and a light drizzle fell from the sky, you’d surely get soaked on your broom. You stood in the hallways of the Quidditch arena on your own to calm down, not joining your teammates in the changing room yet, they would call you. (E/c) eyes looked at your broom, it was light in your hand. The newest Firebolt broom, made by genius designer Randolph Spudmore. It was the most expensive broom around and your parents had somehow gotten you one even while they were muggles. They probably made a pact with Kuramochi’s parents, his mom was a witch and his dad a muggle but that way they had connections to the wizarding world. 

The design was flawless and innovative. The footrest, stand and twig bands were made out of goblin-made ironwork, the secrets of it not yet fully understood but it seems to give the Firebolt additional stability and power in adverse weather conditions. It’s got a special non-slip foot grip that is advantageous to quidditch players, you didn’t feel worthy of such a broom. The handle was polished ebony and the twigs were a mix of birch and hazel, you were still starstruck by its design after all this time.

The nerves didn’t seem to fade, it felt like a bundle of bugs crawling around in your abdomen and the feeling wouldn’t go away. You just wanted to be out on the field, charging for the Golden Snitch you’d have to seek for, full of adrenaline on your broom.

There are seven players on a Quidditch team: Three Chasers to score points, one Keeper who’s also known as the game maker, two Beaters who were the defenders and smacked the Bludgers and one Seeker. 

There are four balls involved in the sport. The first the Quaffle, it’s the ball the Chasers use to score points through three big hoops on the field. Then there are two Bludgers, mostly used to hit other players with so that they’ll fall off their broom, they are enchanted and so move on their own. The Golden Snitch is the last one, it’s a small ball that fits in the palm of your hand. It’s golden, as the name says, and has two tiny wings that carry it around. The Snitch is a magical item as well, it is set free at the beginning of the game and it’s the Seekers’ job to seek for the Snitch and catch it before the game ends. If the Seeker catches the Snitch, the game will be over and your team will have won. 

Doesn’t sound too hard, right? Well, it really is. During practice your seeking didn’t go as smoothly as it did in the past. Everyone told you it must be that you were nervous for the upcoming game, which you were, but it started to lower your confidence. Mei told you you would be fine, that you were ready. You were starting to doubt his legendary judgement. 

Footsteps echoed through the empty hallway, you didn’t care to look up who it was. Pinching the bridge of your nose with your fingers you sighed, you heard the cheers from the entire school who sat in the stands in the arena, could you really do this?

“Just the one I was looking for.” A gruff voice said. Upon recognizing the sound you looked up and saw a figure in deep red, Isashiki Jun. Maybe he was the one person you were able to talk to right now.

“Hey.” You softly said.

“What’s with that long face? You’re debuting as Slytherin’s seeker!” He smiled, his agitated usual expression still somewhat present. He just had harsh features. 

“Oh well, you know me. I’m scared out of my mind.” Half a smile was all you could manage, the nervosity was really getting the better of you. 

“Why?” Jun asked.

He always asked the right questions so that you could clear your conscience. “Everyone is used to Narumiya’s undefeated record of spectecular games, just… who am I to replace him, you know?”

Jun closed his eyes and put his hands in his sides, he inhaled and exhaled deeply for a moment and when he was done he clamped a hand on your shoulder and looked you straight in the eyes. “Listen here, (F/n). Sure, Narumiya is a prodigy and an amazing Quidditch player and he happened to be a part of your Hogwarts House. Now that he’s injured the second one in the already amazing Slytherin lineup gets to take the spotlight, just because Narumiya has always overshadowed you doesn’t mean you’re not a good player. Most importantly, you’re not his replacement. You’re your own person. You’re not here to replace Mei, or to copy his plays. No, you’re here to show all of Hogwarts just how (F/n) (L/n) of Slytherin plays the game and well, I’m sure they’ll be blown away by you and your amazing skills. I already am, anyways.” 

“...Jun…” His name was all you could say. You were afraid if you would say more that you’d start crying, the lump in your throat was hard to swallow. The tears were brimming your eyes and you didn’t want to meet his, embarrassed that he’d see you like this.

“Shit.” Jun grumbled. “Come here.” With that he brought you to his chest in a warm hug. Because of the protective gear he wore it wasn’t the most comfortable hug ever, but you were sure you never had a hug like this one before. Normally the deep red of the Gryffindor house was something you’d antagonize before a Quidditch game but now it was the most warm and welcoming red you had ever seen. You hugged him back, hard. Another deep rumble that sounded like a complaint left his mouth but you didn’t hear what he said exactly. Once he pulled back you thanked him.

“Thank you, Jun. I wouldn’t know where I would be without you right now.” You smiled.

He scratched the back of his head. “Don’t say such embarrassing stuff, it’s only natural I’d do this. Anyways we’ll probably die against your team, Kuramochi is scared shitless of Ryousuke and Shirakawa will probably really kill us one day. Takako is going to kill both Yuuki and I, I won’t even get the chance to do anything before the game is over I think. Anyways, I need to return to the changing room for the team meeting and you should too.” 

“Right, I will. Thanks, again. See you on the field.” You smiled.

“No worries. By the way, you’ll also beat Sawamoron, that Firebolt together with your fighting spirit will win even from his perseverance.”

A giggle escaped your lips. “Stop it already.” Both grinning you parted ways.

-*- 

The wind was bitter cold high up in the sky, you had to squint to see clearly through the raindrops. Shouts and screams filled the air, distracting you from finding the snitch. Your team was clashing with Gryffindor’s the same way it always did, the two houses were famous for their never ending rivalry. Ryou said something behind your back, encouraging words for you to keep searching. Mukai Taiyou flew past your head, he was never one to pay much attention to his teammates when chasing the quaffle.

Suddenly a flash caught your eye and at that same moment you could hear Mei’s high pitched voice tell you to go. There, almost on the ground near the foot of the stands the Golden Snitch zoomed its way around. Before you could even think of what you were supposed to do your body reacted on its own. The Firebolt served you perfectly, you had no trouble staying strong on your broom when you dove to the ground. Alerted by your sudden movements Sawamura chased you. Even without knowing where the snitch was, he would see it sooner or later if he chased you.

As a magical object, the snitch tried to move away once you were closing in on it. The rain painfully hit your face now that you flew so fast but you didn’t care. The snitch shot up from its position near the ground and you followed its movements just as quick, closing the distance between you and the object in the process. It was just millimeters out of reach. You tried to stretch your arm, stretch your fingers even to just hope you felt the snitch slip into your grasp. Then out of nowhere you were knocked to the side, almost hitting the side of the bleachers in the process. The impact surprised you so much your breath hitched, when you looked at what had hit you you saw that Sawamura had joined the fight. 

You frowned at him and decided to ignore his rough play. You never liked it when seekers got physical with one another but unfortunately it was part of the game. He was closer to the snitch now than you were, in the meantime you both had chased it way up and flew high above the stands. Sawamura and you weaved to chase it, bumped into each other over and over and kept coming closer to the snitch just to have it slip away once more. The snitch dove again and suddenly the two of you found yourselves in the midst of the heated quidditch game once more. Now you had to look out for your teammates, Quaffles and Bludgers while still chasing after the snitch at the same time. It was so difficult, you were stressing out but you loved it. The rush of adrenaline through your veins was amazing, you were out of breath and your heart was beating like crazy, you wouldn’t trade this feeling for anything in the world.

It seemed you weren’t the only one distracted, Sawamura had lost track of the snitch for a second as well until you saw it once more, hanging around the hoops of Slytherin’s side of the field. You weaved past your teammates and ducked when a Bludger nearly hit your head. Once more the snitch dove and it now flew right past the audience. You were still aware of Sawamura, he was going to hit you again but how would you avoid him? Suddenly, you heard Mei shout at you.

“(F/n)! Brains!!” 

Of course. Outsmart that dumbass, that was what Mei had told you. Sawamura would be charging your way head first, he wouldn’t be thinking about much else than getting rid of you for that moment. He would come from the side, all you had to do was time it right. From the corner of your eye you saw him approach, fast. The bleachers on your left, Sawamura nearing on your right. In 3...2..1… you rolled over to your left and for a split second you hung upside down before you rolled back up. Sawamura had missed you and crashed into the bleachers, when you looked back you saw him lying in between his housemates who were hit by his impact. 

You turned back around, now was the time to catch the snitch. It was following a pattern, or so you thought. If you were correct it should be making a cut to the right just around now. You took the risk, stretching your arm out and holding your palm open. The snitch moved just as you predicted and flew right into your hand. Everyone in the audience who belonged to your house burst out in cheers and screams, you held your hand up that held the snitch to show everyone your team’s victory. You’d stopped flying forward and just drifted in the air, your teammates flew over to you to hug you, pat you on the back or give you a high five. No one could wipe the smile off your face right now no matter how hard they tried. Your eyes found Kuramochi’s, he looked defeated but still smiled because he was happy for you. You looked at Jun next who shot you a thumbs up.

Someone laughed in the stands, Narumiya Mei. A spectacled Keeper made his way to you. “It seems Mei’s disciple hasn’t failed him yet.” 

“Shut up Kazuya, we play for the same team! Is ‘congratulations’ too hard for you?” You tried to say it in a way to mock him, but your grin didn’t break and you ended up saying it very enthusiastically. It made him laugh at you.

“Hahah! You truly never disappoint! Thanks for winning and throwing Sawamura in the stands, you’re brutal.” He grinned and locked an arm around your shoulders, pressing him to your side. The overflow of euphoria amongst your teammates was amazing, you’d never felt this way before and you’d never experienced such a connection with your teammates before. That Mei! He got to experience that so often! A new passion and determination coursed through your veins, there was no way you’d let him steal this amazing position from you now! All of your teammates had never acted this way towards you, especially Miyuki had never showed his happiness this way. This eruption of joy was too much for most of your housemates to casually play off, you would never forget this day, this feeling. 

This was why you played Quidditch.

-*-

The rush from the win of the game had died down a little, you trailed along behind the team to be welcomed in the Great Hall later. One person from the pack in front of you slowed down to walk beside you, it was Mukai Taiyou. To be honest you’d never really formed a solid opinion about him, you didn’t like him but you didn’t dislike him either. He always had this look on his face that made it impossible to find out what he was thinking. Not in the way Miyuki would have it, no it was a more… annoying way.

“So, (F/n)-Chan. How does your first victory feel?” Mukai had once tried out for the position of seeker but quickly gave up, the team found out he was much better as a chaser and he took it upon himself to become the best chaser of his grade. 

You wondered if it could do any harm if you told him your true feelings, but you disliked lying anyways. “Magical.”

“Ahh you’re funny, I like that.” He tilted his head to the side. “We never really talked before, why is that I wonder?”

“You never had an interest in people who didn’t make the first string team?” You quirked a brow and he blew out a low whistle.

“Observant too, I can see why Narumiya-San likes you.” Taiyou nodded. You didn’t really know what to respond to that.

“W-What do you want exactly, Taiyou?” He was getting on your nerves now, this was why you stayed away from him. He gave you a weird uncomfortable feeling.

“You have the potential to achieve great things, (F/n).” He said.

“I know, the sorting hat sorted me into Slytherin.” It was a saying that the Sorting Hat who chose the houses’ students ended up in always saw something peculiar in the ones he’d put in Slytherin. Even the Slytherins who slacked off in class and didn’t study, they were great in something and you weren’t allowed to forget that fact. 

“Right, right. If we combine our minds we could surpass even He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.” He slyly looked your way.

“What are you saying about You-Know-Who?! Don’t talk about him! Especially don’t as if he did amazing things or something!” You hissed, quickly checking if no one from the team overheard you.

“He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named did great things (F/n). Terrible, yes, but great. He was still one of the most powerful wizards who ever lived whether you like it or not.” He said. “But anyways I was messing around, just saying that if we spar a bit with ideas, charms. Perhaps we could create some cool things. It’s just an offer, it’s up to you whether you wanna take it or not.” 

“Okay sure. Thanks for the offer.” To be honest you were put off by his sudden talk about You-Know-Who. Maybe you would ask Ryou about Mukai later. Luckily you didn’t have to talk to Taiyou for much longer, you entered the Great Hall together with your team and you were greeted by the cheers and compliments from many of your housemates. 

It had been nothing like what you had imagined it would be. Everyone was so immensely happy, you remember being a spectator and feeling that joy whenever Slytherin won a quidditch game. It was so amazing to feel that joy but in a completely different way. Housemates hugged you, people congratulated you and complimented you even if you had never talked to them before. The glimmer of admiration found in the eyes of the first years was so special to witness. Scanning through the crowd of green cloaks you found Mei’s eyes and he grinned, knowing exactly what you were going through and he raised his eyebrows. ‘This is it, (F/n)-Chan’ you heard him say with a tiny gesture like that. You just nodded back at him, getting distracted by Miyuki who pulled you by the arm and sat you down together with the team. 

“Sit down (F/n)-Chan! Eat your well deserved dinner, you did a good job…” 

Surprised by his sudden compliment you looked at him. “Wow, than-”

“...at throwing Sawamura into the bleachers, hahah!” He laughed, and knowing this was the second time he had brought it up was a sign that the spectacled boy was not going to shut up about this any time soon.

“It’s all thanks to Mei, really. He taught me a trick or two.” Was what you told him as you took a bite of the delicious food on your plate.

“Really now? Getting to be your private tutor, how lucky he must be.” Miyuki said with a mouth full of food, you instantly shot him a look of disgust that he just laughed at. Once he had swallowed his food he started talking again. “Question,”

“Ask away.” 

“Wanna go to Zonko’s with me and the rest tomorrow?” He asked.

“Maybe, depends. Who is ‘the rest’?” You raised an eyebrow at him.

“Nori, Ono, Sawamura, Kuramochi and me obviously. You can bring some friends along if you want, I know Kuramochi would appreciate Wakana’s presence.” Miyuki smirked.

A chuckle left your mouth. “Oh yeah, I’m sure he would. She’s in love with Sawamura though, but I don’t want to spoil his mood whenever he’s near her.”

“Hmm, you should tell him.” Miyuki nonchalantly said.

“Why?” You questioned.

“Kuramochi told me that the two of you had a fight the other day and well, what I got from it was that you were cross with him for not telling you about Nori. One of your friends likes him, right?” He got a nod from you for an answer. “So wouldn’t that be super narcissistic from you to keep such an important thing from him if you got angry over something similar?” 

For a moment you just stared at him. Surprised by the fact he gave you a form of serious advice but perhaps more irritated by the fact that it made sense. You squinted your (e/c) eyes at him. “I hate that you’re making sense for once and at the same time it’s making me very suspicious.” 

Miyuki smirked. “Just advice from a friend is all, take it or leave it.” He finished the last of his pumpkin juice and you distracted yourself with looking at the great hall. You wanted to go to Gryffindor’s table to thank Jun but you didn’t feel very welcomed there. Of course, you hadn’t missed the glares they had sent you earlier. They were known for being brave, the ones cloaked in red. However, it was also said that Gryffindor and Slytherin were two sides of the same coin so maybe, if you tried hard enough, it wouldn’t be that difficult to be brave for just a moment. The rest of the student who had finished eating dinner were scattering among the tables to talk with their friends from different houses, so it would be okay.

“I’ll be right back.” You said and Miyuki looked at you as you left. He was wondering where you could be headed, you were celebrating with your teammates after all.

People at the Slytherin table congratulated you as you walked by and you nodded and smiled at them, though your eyes were back on the Gryffindor table soon after. The team sat at the head of the table, Yuuki always sat there anyways. He was the house’s Prefect. Normally Jun joined him as his best buddy and Chris also sat with them. Heads were already turning from the table as they noticed the star of their lost game approach. Kanemaru, a hot headed third year stood up and yelled in your direction. “We don’t need you at our table, Slytherin Mudblood!” 

Upon hearing Kanemaru yell, the sixth year’s heads had turned to him as well as the direction in which he yelled. The second that Kanemaru had thrown the insult at you eyes widened and someone else stood up. “Kanemaru, if you don’t shut up right now I’ll kill you.” Jun shouted and immediately beckoned you over.

The great hall had silenced a bit upon hearing the ruckus near the Gryffindor table, but the noise of chatter quickly picked up again. You always chose to ignore the insult which was often thrown at those who had two muggle parents, but you couldn’t deny you felt your eyes sting a bit. When you arrived at the head of the table you managed to smile at Yuuki, Jun scooted over and so did Chris, Isashiki pulled you around so that you sat in between the two sixth years. They were a trio to be feared, especially on the quidditch field, and everyone in their house held immense respect for them. Jun glared at his staring housemates for good measure before putting an arm around your shoulders in comfort. Jun also had muggle parents, so he knew how much the insult had hurt you and even took it personally when it wasn’t directed at him. 

“My apologies, (F/n).” Yuuki began. “It’s my fault as a prefect that someone of our house has insulted you like that. I will discuss it with Miss McGonagall, right now he is a benchwarmer on the team but I’d like to have him suspended from the team for a bit. That way he’ll learn.” 

“Yeah, thanks Tetsu.” You smiled warmly at him and then turned to Jun. “I actually wanted to come and thank you for your little pep talk earlier.” 

Isashiki looked away but didn’t let go of you. “It was nothing, I told you.”

“You’re so considerate Jun, encouraging the even the enemy.” Chris chuckled next to you.

“Shut up, she’s not the enemy. You know that.” 

“Are you guys going to Hogsmeade tomorrow?” You asked.

Yuuki smiled gently. “We are, Chirs, Jun, Tanba, Matsuko, Ryousuke and I will be getting ourselves some butterbeer in the Three Broomsticks.” 

“Cool, I’m probably joining Miyuki and some other guys to Zonko’s Joke Shop. I’ll ask to stop by at the Three Broomsticks, we can join you guys if you’d like.” You smiled.

“We’d be honored.” Tetsuya answered. 

Before anyone else could start up the next topic of conversation you were interrupted by a hand on your other shoulder. You had to awkwardly turn your head to look back at the person standing behind you, not to mention Jun had never let go of you. “(F/n), I heard what Kanemaru yelled just now. You okay?” The best friend in the whole wide wizarding world, Kuramochi Youichi, came to check up on you.

“Yeah, thanks.” He wasn’t offered much more than a weak smile but he knew enough. Kuramochi squeezed your shoulder before answering he was glad you were fine and taken good care of by his housemates, afterwards he quickly left. It comforted you that he had stopped by even if it was for a second, he showed you he cared at the moments where it mattered. 

  
  



	4. Chapter 4

It was a windy winter day and spring was right around the corner, you would have been more comfortable just staying in the dormitory today though but you couldn’t bail on Miyuki and the rest now that they had invited you to go to Hogsmeade together. After all, Fujiwara, Wakana and Yoshikawa agreed to go with you as well so that you wouldn’t be the only girl around. There was no returning now, you were already tailing the group over the cobblestone bridge leading to the little town. A dark green scarf was wrapped around your neck and covered your chin as well, it was your only defence against the cold wind together with your wooly coat. 

Upon leaving Hogwarts you ran into Sanada and he asked you to tell him about muggle fashion some time after seeing your coat. The Ravenclaw was from a prestigious wizard family. His mother was a well known Auror who had arrested many dark wizards and had caught a few Death Eaters, as were the followers of Voldemort called, too. His father worked at the Ministry of Magic. So, as one might have guessed he had not gotten much education on the muggle world and all that was in it throughout the years. There was no need for him to know about a world he didn’t belong to. It was different for wizards and witches like you, who either had human parents or one muggle parent and one who belonged in the wizarding world. However, when you really thought about it you were glad that you grew up in the ‘normal’ world. Finding out you were a witch was quite the shock but you were gifted this entire world of things to discover and learn along with the people who lived in it. Your parents were supportive and just as excited as you were about everything, so you wrote them monthly letters about what was happening around school. 

A small smile crossed your features upon remembering when you had your friends from school over for the first time. Kuramochi and Sachiko stayed at your place in the summer, you guys were around thirteen years old then. Lucky for you those two got along well, it really was a summer to remember. Thinking about it you recalled that Kuramochi still had his badly bleached hair back then. You looked at the back of his head and snickered, he noticed and turned his head. “You laughing at me, (F/n)?”

“I just suddenly remembered that phase you had after our first year here.” Upon hearing that he immediately knew what you meant, his ears turned a light shade of red.

“What phase?” Miyuki decided to butt into the conversation.

“It’s a secret.” You grinned and held a finger to your lips. After that you shot Kuramochi a look and he gratefully nodded.

“Man,” Your best friend sighed. “it’s really cold. Can’t wait for spring, that’s also the best quidditch weather too…” 

“All you think about it quidditch, right Kuramochi-Kun? You sound like Eijun.” Wakana giggled. He visibly blushed and hid in the collar of his coat, you frowned. You had to tell him about Wakana’s feelings for Sawamura, this wasn’t fair to him and you realized that now. 

With the flick of your wand you had hidden in your sleeve you activated the communication charm on Kuramochi. It was a way to communicate with someone in a way muggles would call telepathically. You had asked for Sanada’s notes earlier as you fell asleep on the day of the lesson you’d be learning it 

_ ‘Mochi,’  _ The boy visibly stiffened.  _ ‘chill out it’s the communication charm.’ _

_ ‘Oh, uh okay, why are you not talking to me like a normal person?’  _ He asked.

_ ‘I just wanted to tell you that I need to tell you something important later, just don’t want anyone to pry is all. Don’t worry about it, though.’ _ You told him. 

_ ‘Okay sure, now get out of my head.’  _ He said and with that you deactivated the charm. 

It didn’t take long for the group to arrive at Hogsmeade. To be honest you were having more fun than you thought you would have. To your own surprise you got along very well with Kawakami and Ono even when you hadn’t talked much to them in the past. Kuramochi was busy kicking Sawamura’s ass from time to time and Miyuki just annoyed the two Gryffindor’s. The rest of the girls laughed at them and you played along. You had one of those moments where you realized just how lucky you were with the people around you and how happy they made you, even if some of them were complete idiots. 

You had only been in Zonko’s Joke Shop once, you had heard some of your housemates had purchased crafty items from the store. The products varied immensely, from nose biting teacups to self answering quills, Zonko really had it all. Secretly you wished you could have one of those self answering quills, it would help you greatly with your homework. However, knowing that if you got caught with one you’d face a full month of detention… it made the item less attractive instantly.

The warmth of the shop surrounded you immediately when you entered with the group, you had completely forgotten how impressie the place was. There were colors everywhere, magical objects flying around, various potions with different effects up on the shelves, you really didn’t question why the boys came here so often anymore.

“(F/n)-Chan, check this out!” Miyuki beckoned you over to a corner of the store. When you arrived you saw he stood next to a little fountain, mist and colorful clouds of whatever it was hung around the thing. It looked inviting. The Slytherin grinned mischievously. “Look at that,” he pointed at a little vial with pink fluid in it that was perched on top of the fountain. “it’s a love potion.”

“That’s cool, are you so desperate you need that for someone?” You teased him. 

He raised his brows. “I was thinking of recommending it to you, really.” 

“Pff, as if I’d need such a thing. Seriously, if you use this you’re shallow.” 

Miyuki sighed in disappointment. “You get serious way too quick, (F/n). Learn to relax a bit, will you?” He said and grinned as he moved and pinched your cheek.

“Ow! Hands off!” You swatted his hand away with your own.

“Yeah, Miyuki. Hands off.” A familiar voice said and immediately you felt an arm around your shoulders. Kuramochi had come to your rescue as he always did. 

“Seems like you really don’t need it (F/n)-Chan! I can’t believe you’re right, hahah!” Miyuki snickered and you guys decided it was time to look around elsewhere. Kuramochi had asked you if Kazuya really didn’t bother you, you told him it was fine and that he had nothing to worry about. Besides, you could handle yourself, you were a very capable witch. In return he said he knew that but that he couldn’t just let those things happen. You appreciated that and patted his shoulder. 

The girls had pulled you over to a shelve that sold all kinds of things to scare or surprise people, you didn’t really like those. Well, you didn’t like getting pranked with them because you’d always fall for them. In the corner of your eye you saw the pink haired Hufflepuff called Tonks chat with the shop owner Zonko. She really had a knack for mischief, you remembered you saw her in detention with Kuramochi as well. There were many rumors about the girl but you didn’t really remember them, she just popped up in conversations now and then and you realized you hadn’t talked to her personally yet. Perhaps that day would come but right now you didn’t feel like interrupting her conversation, that and you felt like you were getting smothered by the different things in this store. All the sounds and chatter and smells and different things to see got a little much for you so you told the rest of the group you’d wait for them outside. Haruno asked if she had to come with you but you reassured her it was fine and that she should spend her time here at Hogsmeade the way she wanted to. 

Upon leaving the suffocating shop you took a deep breath. The wintery temperature made your heated cheeks flush but it felt good to get some air. Some fresh air. You walked around a bit in front of the store and decided to scan the area. When you breathed in once more the odd smell of tobacco filled your senses, you hadn’t really seen wizards smoke before. When you looked to your right you saw a boy standing near the entrance of Maestro’s Music Shop. He had dark hair and a stern look on his face, upon closer inspection you recognized him. Hongo Masamune.

He was a genius quidditch player from Ravenclaw in his fifth year. A seeker, maybe even a better one than Mei. The boy did not play for his school team though, no, he had been recruited for the Tutshill Tornados. It was one of the top dog quidditch teams in the national competition right now, you had not seen him around school often as he was allowed to leave for his career in quidditch. You wondered what he was doing here right now and why he was smoking, of all people he should be the one focusing on his health. He had noticed you starting and you had noticed just a little too late that he’d caught you and awkwardly blinked at him. There was no way you could have played that off anyways. 

“What are you looking at?” He gruffly said before taking another drag of his cigarette. 

You’d picked up easy conversation making throughout the years you spent with Miyuki and Sanada so you decided to approach him but stopped at a decent distance away from him. “Just wondering where you got cigarettes.” 

“It’s not that hard, if you really want something there are many ways to get it.” Hongo replied and looked away.

“You got muggle friends who send them to you?” You questioned him, he turned to you and you saw his dark eyes linger on your green scarf before looking you in the eyes again. He seemed to recognize you just now.

“Something like that.” 

“You know you can get the equivalent for cigarettes pretty easily around these parts, especially from other students?” You told him. 

His brow twitched. “I know, it’s just not as good as real cigarettes.” Hongo looked you up and down and you felt judged by someone with a status like him. “Anyways what do you want, Slytherin’s newest seeker?” 

A smile reached your features. “Didn’t think you’d know who I am. I must say I am honored, Tutshill boy.” You sarcastically said.

“Don’t talk to me like that, you won’t last long that way.” You swallowed thickly at that. Everyone knew Masamune had connections everywhere, but you only started thinking about what those connections could include just now. “I saw the game yesterday.” 

It remained silent for a second. “...What did you think?” 

“Not bad. Though, your competition wasn’t that much of a challenge either.”  Hongo sighed as he dumped his cigarette on the ground and put it out with his shoe. That constant frown still on his face. 

“I’m glad I got an ‘easy’ start, seeing as I’m seeking in the place of Mei.” You said.

“Mei is alright, though he doesn’t deserve to be praised that much. It will only feed his ego.” You squinted your eyes at him, fighting to keep a smirk down.

“I must agree with you but, are you saying you could beat Mei?” It was his turn to look you in the eyes, a dangerous gleam present in them.

“Of course.” 

Now you couldn’t contain a smile anymore. Both of them had been recruited to play for teams playing in the national competition but they hadn’t had the chance to face off yet due to Mei’s injury. “So, you’re better than Mei then?” 

“I  _ am  _ better than him.” Masamune couldn’t contain a smirk either. Your house pride was getting in the way of thinking about this clearly.

“I look forward to the day you two face off fair and square.” You told him and he looked away once more.

“Whatever.” Hongo sighed and walked your way, he stopped as he was about to pass you and you looked him in the eye. “Slytherins will do whatever it takes to achieve their goals, right?” You could only nod in response. “Watch your back then.” 

-*-

The Three Broomsticks was a cozy pub that welcomed many students and other wizards and witches in the area. They were known for their butterbeer, one might wonder why they would serve kids beer but they made it without alcohol for the underage students by default. The place was owned by Madam Rosmerta, a blonde extraverted woman who was always in for a chat and recognized everyone’s face. 

It was easy to locate the sixth years who were already in the pub. Tanba, Masuko, Isashiki, Yuuki, Ryousuke and Chris sat in the right corner of the cafe. The moment you entered you saw their group. Kuramochi had already seen Ryou and ran over to the group before you knew it, the rest you were with decided to pick a table next to theirs so that both groups could conversate with each other. 

For some reason, you didn’t know why, you had always felt there was this… barrier that separated you from the sixth years. Not just the age difference, which wasn’t even big, but something else. They had this air around them that made you feel that everything you did was stupid. You were starting to think it was your insecurity that was talking. Chris pulled up a chair next to him to gesture you to sit but a loud voice caught the attention of the two of you. “(F/n)! Come, sit here!” It was Jun.

Chris looked at you. “He’s taking advantage of the fact that he just turned eighteen.” 

“Ahh,” You smiled and turned back to Isashiki. “so Jun’s tipsy!” The rest of the boys laughed at that. It was true that the Gryffindor’s cheeks were red, you bet he never had alcohol before. “I’m good though Jun, thanks.” He grumbled something incoherent in return.

You sat down on the chair Chris pulled out for you. He was on your left, Ryousuke on your right. The captain of your quidditch team seemed to be quietly enjoying the time spent with his friends. Secretly you knew he loved them, even if he would never admit caring so much about his friends. He caught you staring. “How are you doing, (F/n)-Chan?” 

“Good, I think.” You answered.

“You think?” He raised a brow.

“Yes, I’ve got a lot of things on my mind right now.” A sigh escaped your lips. “One of which I wanted to talk to you about.”

“Hm, really now?” He hummed and took a sip of his butterbeer. “What is it?”

“It’s about Taiyou.” When Ryousuke didn’t reply you saw it as a sign to continue talking. “He talked to me after the game yesterday. Seemed innocent at first really, but then he suddenly started about You-Know-Who.” 

“(F/n) everyone talks about that guy once in a while--”

“No but really, it felt off. Perhaps I’m overthinking like you would have said, it was just a hunch after all.” You said.

Ryou paused a second. “Yeah, though you’re almost always right when it comes to instinct. But don’t sweat it, Taiyou has got nothing to do with you and I’m always here for you.” 

You couldn’t help but smile at his kind words and moved out of your chair to hug him the best you could. “I’m glad I can count on my captain for anything.” 

“You’re such a supportive captain, Ryou-san!” Miyuki teased when you pulled away from the shorter boy. Both of you shot him an evil look he instantly cowered from in response.

“Honestly though, what are all of us going to do when you guys graduate?” The guys looked at each other when you asked that. All of the sixth years here were either captain of their team or prefect of their Hogwarts house, they were important positions and duties amongst the students and they had held those titles for a few years. Things would drastically change without them and the boys knew that too. “More importantly, I won’t have a protection squad anymore!” 

The guys chuckled at that, it seemed appropriate you’d let them spend time with each other as much as you could. Though, at the same time you wanted to spend as much time with them while you still could. It was a conflicting feeling but a hunch told you you’d be better off returning to the group of friends you originally came here with. Excusing yourself, you stood up from the chair and went over to the rest. 

“Guess who decided to grace us with her presence.” Youichi sarcastically said as the comment made everyone laugh, you noticed how his gaze shifted to Wakana immediately. It was time you told him. 

“Wanna join me outside for a bit, You?” He got the hint and played it off casually.

“It’s that time again I see.” The boy mumbled, he always complained when you wanted to talk about something serious with him but never meant it.

“A romantic getaway?” Miyuki teased.

“No, we’re planning your murder.” You told him with a smirk.

Nori snorted. “You’re losing it all today, Miyuki!” The spectacled boy had nothing to say. He could only laugh awkwardly in that way he always did.

When you pushed the wooden door of the Three Broomsticks open to go outside the harsh wind immediately met your skin and you shuddered at the contact. Kuramochi let out a grunt at the cold, tugging his coat closer to his body the best he could. For once you had no idea how your best friend would react at the news you were going to tell him. Would he get angry with you? Maybe he’d even say he didn’t believe you, so many things could happen. However, you knew it was best to tell him the truth because he would find out one way or another. With your hands stuffed in the pockets of your coat you faced him, he looked at you from beneath his lashes. Kuramochi never knew he had such an intense look on his face on moments where it mattered, guess he could be a bit intimidating from time to time.

“Spill it.” He said, his breath forming a cloud in the cold air. It was a thing he’d usually ironically say, but now he said it in a different way. Probably to hide the fact he felt he didn’t like what was coming.

“You want to ask Wakana to the Yule Ball, right?” (E/c) eyes hesitantly found his and he gave you a hesitant nod, wondering where the conversation was going. “Well um, I wanted to tell you- because I think it’s the right thing to do, as your best friend, that I heard from Haruno that she heard fro--”

Kuramochi interrupted you. “Just say it already, (F/n).”

“Wakana is in love with Eijun.”  

Silence. You only looked down at the cobblestone street, not daring to look him in the eyes right now. It remained silent way too long, this felt wrong. It felt wrong to know you’d hurt your friend in way, your eyes slowly began to sting. The feeling was about to get too much until you suddenly felt a hand being placed on your head. With glossy eyes you looked at your best friend who didn’t look too good either, you weren’t sure if it was because your sight was a bit hazy but his own eyes seemed to be glazed over as well. Out of instinct you hugged him and he hugged back. Kuramochi let out a sigh that fanned against your cheek.

“I’m sorry.” You mumbled in his shoulder.

“Don’t be.” He whispered and pulled away, sighing and clearing his throat like nothing had ever happened. “You wanna head back inside or…?”

You shook your head. “I don’t really think so, I need to send my parents a letter from the owlery and I’m not really in the mood anymore for all this social stuff. Guess I’ve ruined it a bit for you as well…”

“No, you haven’t. Thanks for telling me.” Youichi looked you in the eyes, the gratitude in them was real and you felt that. “I’ll join the rest for a bit but will head back to the dorms early, so we’ll see each other again then, okay?” 

“Yeah.” 

“Okay.” He gave you a small smile before pushing at the heavy door to enter the cozy pub again. Then you were alone on the streets. The load seemed off your shoulders and you just hoped Youichi would get back up soon. Until then you would help him stand. 

-*-

You wrote the letter to your parents in your dormitory. On your way there you’d run into Takako and greeted her with a weak smile. The letter to your parents was shorter than it usually was, you apologized for that in it as well and wrote that you were in a bit of a rough patch with Kuramochi. They would understand. As owls were not allowed to be kept in the dorms you had no choice but to walk all the way to the owlery to send your letter. The Slytherin dorm rooms were located in the dungeons of Hogwarts, the windows looked out into the Great Lake where one could spot the giant squid swimming by if they were lucky. The Gryffindor’s common room and dorms were in a tower, so they could have their owl fly over to their room if they wanted to. Each location had their own pro’s and con’s. 

With the letter in hand you made your way through Hogwarts once more. You passed Hufflepuff’s Penny Haywood, the most popular girl in your grade. She brightly smiled at you and you smiled back, though not as enthusiastically as you would have liked to. 

The Castle Grounds looked grey and grim, the cold didn’t brighten your mood much either. However, you hadn’t visited your owl in a day or two and were excited to see your little buddy. Owls were one of the most loyal animal companions a witch or wizard could have, you’d immediately noticed the second you had gotten one. 

The Owlery was a circular stone room at the top of the West Tower. It was always rather cold and draughty, because none of the windows had glass in them. You quickly climbed the steps and suspected the Owlery to be empty at this time of the day, most people had already sent out their letters at the beginning of the weekend. When you pushed the door open you were greeted by an unpleasant smell, and not just that of the animals. A familiar figure leaned on one of many stone window frames. Odd that you two would run into each other again today. The boy did not look up to see who entered, he ignored most people after all. 

“It’s really bad for your health if you smoke so many times a day.” You carefully said, seeking your owl between many others.

With a raised eyebrow Hongo turned his head to the side to see you standing there. He averted his gaze just as nonchalantly, taking another puff of the toxic stick between his fingers. “It’s bad for your health no matter how many times you do it.” 

“Yeah, you’re right.” You’d spotted your owl and whistled shortly, the creature immediately recognized the sound and flew down to perch on a wooden stand specially made for the owls to rest on. “Hi Ace, long time no see buddy.” You whispered to the bird, he was a big owl as his species belonged to one of the biggest in the world. With your pointer finger you scratched his brown-grey-ish feathers, he closed his eyes and called out to you in delight. The call of owls like Ace was very different from other species and sounded more like a weird grunt form another animal than an owl. You looked to your right and saw Hongo had approached you and Ace.

“What breed is she?” He asked.

“He. He’s a Verreaux’s Eagle-Owl.” The boy next to you nodded, in the meantime you gave the letter to Ace to hold. 

“That’s a rare breed, right?” It was funny to see him try to make conversation. Masamune still looked as if he didn’t care, that look of everlasting irritation was also present on his face as always. 

“Kind of yeah, when I went to buy my school stuff in Diagon Alley for my first year I was looking around though I didn’t have the money for a pet anyways.” Hongo looked at you with question in his eyes. “I’m Muggleborn, you see. However, the shopkeeper said he had an older owl that no one would buy. She didn’t know the reason for it, but probably because he’s a big owl which can be intimidating and he sounds weird. Long story short I could just take him with me, we’ve been pretty inseparable ever since. He’s just a bit clumsy and grumpy from time to time though.”

Masamune took another drag of his cigarette. “I see,” his eyes shifted to a high corner and he pointed to a small dark brown owl. “that one’s mine. Her name is Nimbus.” 

A chuckle left your mouth at that. “That’s cute, naming her after the legendary broom models.” The boy seemed like he didn’t really know how to respond to that, so he just reached over to Ace to pet him. However, your pet owl wouldn’t have it and bit him in his outstretched finger. Hongo quickly pulled his hand back and held his cigarette between his lips as he used his other hand to cradle his injured finger. 

“Shit! Ace! Don’t do that to strangers!” You cried out and nudged him away to go and deliver the letter, after that you turned to Hongo. “I’m so sorry! He’s always like that with people he doesn’t know, I should have warned you.”

“I’m fine.” He grumbled. Though, it was clear he wasn’t. That injured finger could take a while to heal and would get in his way with quidditch.

“No, you’re not. Let me heal that for you, that’s the least I could do to make it up.” He heard you say as you gently took his hand in yours.

“You know healing magic?” He questioned as he took the cigarette from between his lips and blew the smoke out to the side. 

“Only a bit, Madam Pomfrey was so kind to teach me a bit as I end up in the Hospital Wing more often than I’d like to admit after practice. It’s mostly for minor things but you know Slytherins, we’re just really competitive even in practice.” You said.

“I see.”

“Okay, hold still please.” You asked as you retrieved your wand from a pocket in your robe. With his injured, bloody finger in your hand you pointed the end of your wand at it and drew a slow circle in the air with it. “Episkey.” And just like that the gash in Hongo’s finger closed, not even a scar remained.

“You say ‘only a bit’ yet Episkey requires much talent and practice.” He mumbled as he opened and closed his hand, testing his just healed finger.

“If you end up in the Hospital Wing every week you’re gonna have to practice, whether you like it or not. Madam Pomfrey basically taught me the spell so that she wouldn’t have to deal with me so much.” A smile spread across your lips as you laughed at your own foolishness.

Masamune didn’t say anything, you figured he had nothing to say to that. For some reason you wanted to keep the conversation going, you wanted to find out more about him. You wondered if he was just boring or if there was more to him, girls often hoped for the latter. “You know what I don’t get?” He raised a brow. “How you get the money to buy those.” You said as you pointed at his smoke. Muggle money differed from Wizard money after all.

“Work a muggle job in the summer, take the money with you to Hogwarts and pay your friends by owl. Not that hard.” He took a final drag and blew the smoke into your face before he threw the bud out of the window. You coughed. “Anyways, I need to go to practice.” Before he left he turned his head. “Thanks for healing me, by the way.” All you could offer in return was a smile before the heavy door closed behind his form.

He was an odd boy, Hongo Masamune. 

  
  



End file.
